MANSFIELD, OH - Mansfield Christian school hosted its first Robotics Camp from June 13th through the 15th.

Almost 85 students registered from about 12 area school districts for the three-day event. The camp's agenda includes introductions to robot construction, maze challenges, joystick and software programming, team building competitions, and tournaments to see who built the best robot.

"Essentially, the first day, they will build a robot with a partner," said Mark Delaney, Secondary Principal of Mansfield Christian. "Then, the second day, they are learning how to code. They have a remote control like you'd have in a video game, and each joystick they actually code, and will design to move the robot a certain way."

Delaney also spoke about the benefits of the Robotics Camp, talking about its approach to helping kids learn.

"The way education is moving is through very student-centered instruction," Delaney said. "Ultimately, what we have here is for the past three days, these kids don't realize they're learning. They're having so much fun. It's all hands-on - the collaborating, the problem-solving... it's a great opportunity for these kids to learn and engage with something they've never done before."

The Robotics Camp is part of the STEM program, something that the Mansfield Christian School is trying out for the first time.

"This past school year was the first year that Mansfield Christian School had a STEM program," said Brian Miller, STEM Coordinator for the school. "It's a wildly successful school year for STEM, and you can see the interest is incredibly high. There are 13 school districs represented here today, and all the private schools in the area."

As the camp drew to a close, children could be seen talking excitedly about what their plans for next year were and what they could do to improve on their original designs.